The Best Thing
by Kegel
Summary: As Robin and the gang discover a plot to kill the returning king, confusion is running about as to who is behind it, as Gisborne rules as new sheriff of Nottingham and seems to cooperate with old allies. When the king finally comes to Nottingham, the plot against him as well as his army's mistrust of Saracens, having fought them in the war, bring Djaq in grave danger.
1. Winter Again

**A/N: Here is finally my new story. I've been looking forward to writing and posting this one! Thanks to Emmithar for the beta!**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Winter Again**

It were the long and dark nights of February 1194 that seemed to be the coldest and hardest. For those who could afford no fire wood and little food, it was the worst. The Nightwatchman had been making the longest round this night, no matter that it was difficult for her in the snow and ice, too. It would still be a while before Marian would be back at camp, seeing that she only now had finished her round in Nottingham. Robin would be livid, if he knew, but she had snuck out once all the outlaws had fallen asleep. By now, she felt thoroughly frozen.

She made her way along the alley that led to the tavern, even that place laying silent at this time of night. Looking back to the castle that lay in darkness as well, she wondered if Guy realised that the Nightwatchman was still visiting this town. He knew she was the Nightwatchman. He had not made that knowledge public, but had as new sheriff of Nottingham proclaimed that the Nightwatchman was to be caught and brought to justice for his crimes – a serious warning to her to stop what she was doing. She also had to take care not to run into Allan, as he knew her secret, too. He had joined up with Guy officially after being banned from the outlaws' gang.

Still, as new sheriff of Nottingham, Gisborne was busy with many issues, and so far Marian had not run into him when she had been up and about with her face hidden behind the mask.

Marian did not get many opportunities to go to Nottingham though, especially now in this weather, in which the outlaws seemed to spend most of their time huddling together in their camp in the forest, trying to get warm.

Marian had almost made it to the town's gate, which would be closed at this time of the night, forcing her to get outside by another way, when she saw an unexpected flicker of light. It had come from around the corner and she went to check, seeing another flicker coming from across the street. The light became more steady then and she could see that someone was standing there, waiting. Marian wanted to move on to finally return to camp and warm up, but she was curious too, as to what was going on. Why would anyone wait there at three in the morning, especially in this kind of weather? Moving a few steps up and down in the darkness to get warmer, she kept her gaze fixed at the light. After a while, she could hear the sound of horses coming through the snow, but she did not know who on earth would come here at night through these weather conditions. There were about half a dozen horses that came, but she could not recognize their riders, as the torch was quickly carried away, the men who had arrived following it from the marketplace over to the castle yard, before vanishing there.

Too cold and too tired to investigate, never mind that she did not even know where to start looking in the castle for the unknown visitors, Marian decided to leave the town behind for now. Maybe she would even be lucky and the town's gate would still be open from the new visitors. Making her way over to it, playing out in her mind her alternative plan to get out of the town, she sneaked along the street, only to realise that she was in trouble. Barely visible in the darkness, Allan was standing there, not far from the tavern. He seemed to be waiting and she wondered for what, but what she knew was that he had probably seen her, for his gaze had been directed at her, before she had drawn back into the alley behind her. And if he had, he would report this to Guy.

She considered simply turning around and hiding, returning later in hopes Allan would be gone then, but that was not likely. More likely it was that she would have to hide till the morning, come back out in broad daylight, increasing the danger of being seen by a guard, raising unnecessary alarm and trouble. So she walked back around the corner, hoping to find another way by the parallel street.

Finally having made it to the town's wall, Marian looked up to see if there was a way from the roofs of the houses closest to the wall.

"You have trouble sleeping, too?" a voice came suddenly from behind her and turning, she realised that Allan had indeed seen her and had followed her.

Marian drew back from him.

"I know it's you, Marian," he said.

She didn't say anything, her mind racing to find a way out, without him raising alarm.

"And Giz and I know what you're up to," Allan added.

"So what are you going to do about it?" she retorted.

"Me? Nothing," Allan said. "But Giz will. Not kidding, Marian, but I don't mean you harm. You've got to stop doing that."

"Or else?"

"Or else Giz will get you and then you're in trouble," Allan pointed out.

She frowned at him, thinking through her options.

"Guy isn't Vaysey."

"That's true, but he's the sheriff," Allan argued.

"He never made it public that he knows it is me." Marian stepped back from him further.

"Well, if he told everyone that you're the Nightwatchman, he would have to hang you, wouldn't he?" Allan shrugged. "Can't really have anyone like that go unpunished."

"Look who's talking," Marian shot back. Allan had committed plenty of crimes in the eyes of the sheriff when he had been with the outlaws – and before that time probably, too. It was only betrayal that had brought him this new position. "And Guy won't have me hang." That was the reason why she could still continue as she did. No matter that Guy knew about her, she was certain that he would not take such drastic actions against her. He had often said that he wanted to kill the Nightwatchman, but once facing her, he would not be able to go through with that.

"Maybe he won't," Allan said. "Maybe he will. But he can lock you up, and what do you win then, really?" He shrugged again. "Just friendly advice."

"I don't need the advice of a traitor," she said bitterly. Allan was quiet then, but after a moment, there were new sounds on the street.

"I didn't raise the alarm," Allan was quick to assure her.

"What else have you been doing here then?" she shot back at him, hearing that it were guards who were marching along the streets, while she was still looking for a way out. If she had had enough time and had not been seen, this would have been much easier.

"I saw you earlier and wanted to give you a friendly warning. Did that, leaving now," he shrugged, turning from her. He vanished into the shadows, just moments before the guards came upon the street, Marian trying to climb up onto the roof of the house.

It was no surprise when she had several arrows pointed at her just moments later, the bows deadly visible in the shine of the guards' torches.

"We caught the Nightwatchman!"

* * *

At first it had been strange. When Djaq had spent her first winter in the forest with the outlaws, the gang had huddled closer together at night the colder it became. That had been before they had their permanent camp even, and they had tried to stick together as close to the fire and to each other as they could, sharing warmth. First, it had been an uncomfortable closeness for Djaq, but then it had become more natural, and she had been happy to get as warm as possible in those terribly cold English winter nights.

Now it was winter again, now they were considerably more comfortable in their secured camp, but still, the warmth was still much needed, so they had taken their bedrolls close to their fireplace and were once again huddled together at night. Djaq was sleeping next to Will, who was lying with his back against Robin's, and now it was giving her the comfort that was much needed in these February nights.

They were not leaving camp much these days, save for getting water and firewood. They didn't have much left to give to the people, so trips to the villages were mostly pointless, if it was not simply about checking the situation and gaining new information, which was what Robin sometimes did, but mostly on his own. The past few months had been hard on the villagers with all the new taxes they had to pay for the collection of the king's ransom, the king who was being held prisoner in a castle in Austria. The nobles had to pay taxes, too, but Robin had told them that they were just getting them back from the villagers on their estates.

Altogether, there had been some changes at their camp since the winter before. Marian was living at the camp now, having left the castle behind. Allan, on the other hand, was not there anymore, after he had been banned from the gang for his betrayal. He was living at the castle now, as Djaq knew.

She missed his presence in the gang, and was sure that for at least some of the others it was the same, even if they did not voice it. They hadn't seen him when they had last been in Nottingham weeks ago, and so it had been months since Djaq had last talked to him. She figured there would be little opportunity for it in the future, unless Allan returned to the gang, which was unlikely, for why would he want to leave a safe place like the castle, having apparently no qualms about the fact that he was working for Gisborne now? Of course, there was the gang, too, and the question if they would let him rejoin, but Djaq guessed that would be easier than anyone thought, if only they got to meet again in a situation that did not involve being chased by guards, Allan among them.

The next day might prove to be a chance, for Djaq knew that they were to go to Nottingham, after not having left the forest at all for close to a week. Robin wanted information.

When morning came Djaq still had her blanket wrapped around her, the fire next to her having burned down. Around her blanket Will had laid his arm, the man still sleeping deeply. Djaq smiled. She didn't mind, yet knew that Will might feel uncomfortable, no matter that all of them were staying close to share warmth in these temperatures.

After a while, she wriggled out of her position, leaving the blanket behind. As she moved to wash her face despite the coldness around her, she found the bowl of water with a thin layer of ice on top. This had to have been the coldest night yet, if even inside of their camp the water was freezing. Luckily it was considerably warmer by the fire and under their blankets.

"Where's Marian?" Robin asked all of a sudden, just haven awoken.

Djaq frowned, looking around at the outlaws, some of them still sleeping. Marian wasn't there.

"Did she get up earlier?"

Djaq knew the woman sometimes left the camp at night, still keeping up her work as the Nightwatchman, no matter that she was with the outlaws now. This fact had led to endless discussions with Robin, but had found no resolution so far. It was well known among the outlaws that Gisborne, who was the new sheriff after all, knew that she was the Nightwatchman, knew even that she had worked with Robin. But nevertheless, Marian still was faithful to that disguise. She seemed to play on the fact that Gisborne would not take drastic actions against her, but Djaq could not imagine this would go on forever. She knew Robin was worried, more than worried, about this.

"She hasn't gone out as the Nightwatchman again, has she?" Robin asked.

"I do not know, Robin," Djaq said.

"Not in this weather, she can't be serious!" Much interjected.

"If she has, she's not back yet," Robin pointed out, sounding worried.

"I'm sure she'll come back later," Will said.

Robin nodded. "We still go to Nottingham. We can't postpone that. And maybe she's even been there," he added with a shake of his head.

One by one the outlaws got up, preparing breakfast or going outside to find more firewood. Once everyone had eaten, they all wrapped up as warmly as possibly, before heading out for Nottingham. Djaq had taken her small sack with her, containing few provisions and necessities for making a fire, if they failed to make it back to camp that day. She hefted the sack over her back, also securing her sword that she was taking along.

They were trudging through the snow, it taking them twice as long as usual to get through the forest this way. By the time they finally made it to Nottingham, they were drenched and Djaq shivered even in her fairly warm clothes. Luckily it was easy to get into the town, the guards apparently not troubling themselves much with standing around outside for too long.

"So, lads," Robin said, once they were near the market, lurking in a small alley. "We don't want to raise any trouble today. Just listen and get any information you can." He looked at the castle. "Any new tax collections, any transport of silver you hear about, tell me and we'll see if we can take it. And if you hear anything about the Nightwatchman having been here, tell me."

He left and the outlaws remained behind to split up and look through the town. Much and John went off into one direction, and Djaq walked with Will along the marketplace. She wouldn't have minded going alone today, as she hoped to see Allan in the town and didn't know if Will would quite agree if she planned to talk to him, but then she didn't want to leave Will standing there alone, just because of her own plans. This wasn't what they were in town for, after all. She also wondered if they would find any trace of Marian. It was worrisome that she had not returned to camp. But then she was maybe on her way back now while the rest of the gang was in Nottingham.

They wandered along the streets, doing their best to pretend they belonged there, while keeping their faces still hidden as well as they could. This was an easier feat at this time of the year, for it would only appear natural to have their clothing pulled deeply into their faces. They didn't pick up on any interesting news, but it was Will who suddenly said, "There's Allan."

Djaq turned to look where the man was, after all surprised that they actually saw him today.

"I want to know what he's up to," Will said. "Let's follow him."

Djaq was pleasantly surprised that Will simply wanted to do what she had planned anyway. Maybe they would even get to talk to their former friend. They followed Allan through the streets and not unexpectedly, after some meandering, he headed for the castle.

Djaq looked at Will. "Do we follow him inside?"

Will shrugged. "Robin went into the castle, so why shouldn't we?"

"If we can get out again."

"If no one sees us, that won't be a problem."

Djaq wondered how confident Will really was about that. But she wanted to talk to Allan, too, and so she sneaked into the back door Allan had used, Will on her heels. They were going through the kitchens, as far as she remembered from having entered the castle earlier times.

At first she thought they had lost sight of Allan, but then they could see the man chatting up to a kitchen maid, just before leaving the place with a piece of cheese in his hand. Will and Djaq followed him upstairs, having to avoid guards and other employees of the castle a few times.

When they finally reached the upper corridor, Allan was gone.

"We lost him," Will said.

"He cannot have gone far," Djaq pondered. "I go this way and you go the other, and if we do not find him, we turn back," she suggested.

Will nodded at this. "Be careful."

Djaq nodded once, leaving down one direction of the corridor, while Will went the other way. She turned a few corners, but still there was no trace of Allan. When guards approached, she had to move back, hiding behind an open door. Once the noise of the guards was gone, she went outside again, trying to follow her earlier way.

There were new sounds then, coming from an adjoining hallway. Djaq heard the words but first she thought she had imagined them, for she had not heard the sounds of her native language in so very long. She stopped in her tracks, moving backwards to glance around the corner, only to see no one. Checking for any guard, she followed the corridor for a few paces, looking around the next corner then that led into a wide hallway. Two men were standing there, talking, and it was not just their language, but also their appearance that told her that they were indeed from her native lands.

Djaq just listened to them for some moments, though there was nothing of importance what they said. It were just simple commentaries on their travel. Djaq wondered what they were doing here at the castle. They were obviously not prisoners; so it meant they were guests. Her mind wandered back to Prince Malik who had once been a guest, albeit prisoner of the sheriff. He had come to negotiate peace. What were these men here for? As the two men continued talking, Djaq had to smile, as they mused about their home, lamenting the English winter and the dreary food. As they mentioned the spices they would use to have their meals prepared at home, Djaq almost believed she could smell and taste that which she had not in so long. Still, she knew she could not stay here any longer, as well as that it being visitors from her home did not mean they were well-disposed.

She turned around, only to face a man who looked as if he belonged to the other two.

He smiled a smile that Djaq could not interpret. "As-salaam alaikum. Ma ismuka?"*

* * *

_* Peace be with you. (Formal greeting ). What is your name? (to a male person)_


	2. Unmasked

**Chapter 2: Unmasked**

Marian tried to stay calm when they entered Guy's chambers. She had spent the rest of the night down in the dungeons, and even most of the morning, as the guards hadn't come for her earlier than that, contrary to her earlier expectation. It was almost noon now. She was led upstairs in the castle, still wearing her Nightwatchman outfit, save for the mask that had been taken from her. There was certainly no doubt in anyone's mind now who they had caught.

Marian was anxious as to what Guy would say now. She doubted he would simply let her go; she didn't need Allan's warning to know that. She didn't really think he would have her hang, no matter this was the promised fate for the Nightwatchman, but couldn't help feeling worried she might be wrong about that. Still, her thoughts were more on the question of what else he might do.

As they came into the sheriff's chambers, Guy was sitting at the large table, documents spread in front of him, which he seemed to be busy reading.

It took a moment before he looked up to her, his expression grave.

"So we caught the Nightwatchman," he said.

"Guy-"

"No 'Guy', this is Sir Gisborne to you." His tone was cold.

"Sir Gisborne," she repeated testily.

"Are you ready to confess to your crimes?" he asked.

Marian was not sure what he wanted to hear. He knew she was the Nightwatchman and he probably knew she had been taking goods from the castle and handing them out to the poor.

"You know what I'm doing," she said simply.

"So you admit to being the Nightwatchman and stealing goods from the castle as well as from Locksley?"

"Yes," she said, "And you know I'm doing that to help-"

"What do I have to do to make you stop this madness?" Gisborne asked.

Marian was silent. In the back of her mind, she had started to wonder, if her decision to keep going on was wise. Maybe the time of the Nightwatchman was really over, if his initial purpose to keep her identity hidden was lost.

"Are you still consorting with outlaws?" he asked then.

She said nothing, not denying it either.

He stood up now, walking around the table, coming to a stop in front of her, looking down at her. "This is a hanging offence," he said quietly.

"You wouldn't do that," she said.

She was quite sure of that, but for a long while Marian had figured that there would come the day when Guy would try to stop her with more than talk. She guessed she could talk herself out of most of that, especially now that there was no Vaysey anymore to push Guy around.

He didn't reply, but turned away from her. Taking slow steps back to his seat, he sat down again, and she wondered if letting her wait was some kind of showing her that he was the one who would have his will, or if it was simply him trying to come to a decision.

After some moments he said, "Hood hasn't been seen in many weeks. Where is he now?"

"I'm not going to tell you anything," she shot back at him immediately.

"You are in contact with him, are you not?"

She didn't reply to that, but what else could she say? Guy knew she had been working with Robin at the least, and it had been pretty obvious even that it was more than cooperation. Guy had to be either blind or denying the truth to not know that.

"You have been consorting with outlaws and are doing so still," Guy stated then as a fact.

"I'm not working against you," Marian replied, and it was even the truth. Nothing of what she had done these past few months had actively acted against the new sheriff. She had been focused on helping the poor, sometimes giving information to Robin, but nothing that one could really call harmful to the sheriff, even though she had taken provisions from the castle.

"You leave me no other choice, Marian."

"What are you going to do? Hang me?" she asked boldly, remembering his earlier warning.

"No, but I will keep you from forcing me to do that," he returned, standing up. "Guards!"

"So you're going to lock me up in the dungeons?" she asked as the guards came back.

"No, I'm no fool, Marian," he replied. "I know Hood would come and get you out of there."

* * *

_(whole conversation speaking Arabic with each other)_

Djaq looked at the man who stood before her in the castle's corridor, having surprised her as he had come up from behind. She might have expected anything when being caught in the castle, but not simply being asked for her name.

"I'm Djaq," she replied almost instinctively to his question, yet backing away from him.

"Oh, don't go. I mean you no harm," he said. "I am only surprised to find another countryman here in this cold place," he smiled again.

"Are you working for the sheriff?" Djaq asked directly, looking back and seeing that she now also had the attention of the other two men. It was probably best, if she managed to leave as quickly as possible and found Will again.

"Working for the sheriff? No. We are simply his guests." As the other two men stepped towards them, he said, "May I introduce my friends Aalam and Hafid? And my name is Qusay."

Djaq noticed that he had not mentioned their families, but then she had not mentioned hers, not even giving her real name, the real one no one was calling her anymore these days. Who knew if those were the men's real names.

"What brings you to this country, my friend?" the other asked her then.

Djaq felt uncomfortable under his look, wondering how long they would need to realise that she was, in fact, a woman. She could not even imagine their reaction to such a realisation. Her hair was longer now than when she had first come to England, come to the forest, and her clothes did not try to hide as much that she was a female as they had done before, though their practical use was still a priority, so it was still what would be called men's clothings. With the winter weather, her coat was wrapping her body, so at least this would hide her identity for now.

"I-" she began, but what could she really say? That she had been brought here as a slave? That she was now living with outlaws? She did not want to mention the way she had come here; it was past and she was no prisoner anymore, had sworn herself that she would never be again, so she did not want these men to see her as that.

"Where do you come from?" Aalam wanted to know then.

"I have to go," Djaq decided, not answering the questions. "I am sorry, but I cannot speak to you here. I cannot be here." It was stupid even to talk to these men, just because they were from her home. It did not mean she knew them and it did not mean that they meant well. Djaq moved as if she had to flee from them, but they gave her no trouble in letting her pass.

"Ma'a salama," they called after her, but she did not reply or look back, as she raced down the corridors, hoping to find Will. She then remembered that she had been looking for Allan, but there had been no trace of the man.

When she finally came up to Will, running up to him from behind, he almost jumped.

"Djaq!" he called. "I was worried."

"Sorry, I did not find Allan."

"Neither did I," Will said, clearly disappointed, and Djaq wondered why he was so keen to talk to the man, who he had just a few months ago considered a traitor who he never wanted to see again. Of course, she also knew he had met the man once in the tavern here in Nottingham, and they had talked, but she did not know how much this had changed Will's mind. "Let's go," Will said then, looking at her curiously. "Is something wrong?"

Djaq shook her head, leading the way down the stairs. They made their way through the kitchens and were just about to leave, when they heard a call, the alarm was raised and guards came up to them. Djaq broke into a full-fledged run,Will right behind her. Out on the street, the cold wind hit her hard in the face as they rushed along back to the meeting place of the outlaws, taking a few extra turns to get rid of the guards. It had started to snow again.

They slowed down then, the guards not following anymore. Neither Robin nor Much or John were back yet, so Will and Djaq stood huddled in their cloaks, waiting, on the look-out for their friends.

"There are Saracens at the castle," Djaq said then. There was no reason why she should not tell Will about them, and maybe the information would prove useful, if they were indeed guests of the sheriff. It was a good question why they would be guests of the sheriff at all.

"Saracens?" Will asked surprised, rubbing his hands to warm them.

"They said they were the sheriff's guests," she explained.

"You talked to them?" Will wondered. "And they're Gisborne's guests? Not prisoners?"

"I spoke to them only briefly," she said. "They did not look like prisoners to me."

Will nodded, and it was then that John and Much returned.

* * *

The way into the castle was routine, no matter that he had to take care not to be seen by guards. Gisborne didn't seem to have revolutionised their guarding scheme though since he had become sheriff, so Robin didn't meet any unexpected hurdles on his way in. It was on a hunch that he had decided to check the dungeons.

He was worried about Marian. He knew she often went out at night as the Nightwatchman, though she hadn't for a time due to the bad weather. Apparently she had disregarded that the last night. He wished she would have at least told him, so he would know where to look for her. But the discussions with her about that matter had been endless, and mostly pointless.

She had been thinking she needed to do more on her own, needed to help more on her own, needed to get information they would not get if they worked together in the gang. He also knew she was still waiting for letters, but he doubted they would reach her one way or another. If they came to the castle, Gisborne would confiscate them anyway. Marian had written to Count Friedrich many months ago, asking if the Bavarian noble could give them any news about their king, who was being held captive in Austria, but so far they were still waiting for any reply and didn't know if one would even come at all.

She had sent the letter via a relative, who had sent it on to the continent and the idea was that the return letter would take the same way, so any letter Marian might receive would by its appearance come from her distant family member, not from a European count. Marian had been hoping that this would be enough to keep Gisborne out of her private mail. But now that Marian was living with them in the forest, even that hope was moot. Gisborne would happily look into any of her correspondence, if only in the hope to find anything that would lead him to where she might be hiding.

Making his way down to the dungeons, Robin sneaked around the place, always on the lookout for the jailer or any guards, while looking through the cells that were surprisingly empty. It was probably a good thing, for it was awfully cold down here, too, though Robin wondered if the dungeons were as empty as they were because Gisborne recently had refrained from jailing all too many people, or because he had gotten rid of them quickly. Robin checked the cells one by one. He had been almost certain to find Marian here if not at any other place, so it was even with something of disappointment that he found the last cell empty of her as well. He hoped she never again would have to be down here in a place like this, but then he wished she had been here, just so he knew where she was and that he had found her and could help her escape.

He left the place and looked around the castle some more, but nowhere did he see or hear any sign that told him that the Nightwatchman had been caught, which was so far his only explanation for Marian not having come back. But then, she had maybe come back to camp in the meantime and all his worry was for nothing. He shook his head, deciding to get back to his men for now.

When he came to their meeting place, he saw that all of them were back. He heard Much complaining about the weather and doing his best to pull his hat over his ears that had turned a sharp shade of red in the cold wind. They stood there, waiting. Robin knew it was time to leave. If the group continued to stand there for very much longer, especially considering how cold it was, they would draw unwanted attention. Of course, the guards were probably in little mood to go out and check for suspicious activities in this weather, too.

"Did you hear anything new? Anything about Marian or the Nighwatchman?" Will asked, but John shook his head.

"Most of the people stay indoors, if they can. They don't run around in the cold like we do," Much said. "We should be back at the camp where it is warm."

"We have stayed at camp long enough," Will pointed out. "And tomorrow we will go to the villages, no matter the cold. The people need the help." Much no longer complained, just wrapped his cloak tightly around him. Will continued then, "We saw Allan, he's still in the castle. Djaq and I tried to follow him, but he got away."

"Allan," Much muttered briefly, "I bet he's warm. And he probably has plenty of food. I want some food; maybe I should join him."

"He's working for Gisborne," Will said darkly. "We can be happy Gisborne hasn't come round to camp yet." It had been a contested issue between them, if they should give up camp, as Allan knew where it was. But over the past few months, it had still been a safe refuge.

"Allan would not tell him of our camp," Djaq said. "He just wants a place to stay."

"He shouldn't be able to come back to camp," Much frowned. "Not after what he's done."

"After who's done what?" Robin said aloud, announcing his presence to the group, no matter that he had already listened to their conversation and knew well enough they were talking about Allan.

"Master!" Much turned, "There you are. I thought you had gotten caught again."

"We're talking about Allan," Will filled Robin in unnecessarily, ignoring Much's statement. "He's in the castle...I don't know what he's up to though."

"Playing Gisborne's dog body," Robin replied bitterly. "I haven't found any trace of Marian. We should go, before we're seen here. If she's not back at camp yet, I'm going to the villages."


End file.
